I would have to agree when you both say that practice is key to giving a good presentation. However, I think too much practice can be negative to your presentation as well. When you practice too much, you tend to memorize every word that you say and typically ends up being scripted even if that was not the intention. When it becomes “scripted”…[Read more]

In this UX Magazine article, author Avi Itzkovitch disucusses how the Internet of Things can be used to create disruptive innovations. The main point of this article talks about how connecting a device or […]

In this article entitled Integrative Thinking, author Graham Douglas explores the differences between critical thinking and integrative thinking and addresses how we are programmed to think critically because […]

I think some of the points Douglas makes are interesting, especially the parts about making a “narrative” for connecting wonderings, ideas, etc. I think the narrative helps give some context to general terms like “integrative thinking.” However, I have an issue with the first point above. Douglas argues that we’ve been conditioned by our education to break things into parts–but then suggests that we “memorize” categories that help trigger connections. I think that methodology sounds really similar to what our education teaches us–breaking things down, analyzing them, making connections, etc. I think staying away from breaking things down helps build a more holistic view of each problem.

I too posted an article on integrative thinking and do agree with what Douglas. I do think that our education conditioned us to find a problem, break it down, analyze, and find one solution for the problem.I thiink it’s okay to continue to break problems down, but we shouldn’t focus only one part of the problem. We should focus on the entire problem. I also believe that every person has the potential to become an integrative thinker. There are those rare people, who are integrative thinkers already, but I also think one can practice to become an integrative thinker. The more one practices and puts himself/herself in these situations, the easier it will be to become an integrative thinker.

I agree with Angela when she says that these people are miserable to work with. However, this can give graduating college students a one up because a positive attitude can be a huge selling point in any job interviews or internships that will lead to potential entry level positions. People notice negative attitudes. I know from personal…[Read more]

I feel that it was important for them to take the time to ensure that this cloud based solution was fully functional without flaw before they introduced it. If they introduced it, changing the way that the ATM machine works, and have it not be successful, it would have been very costly. Not to mention the ramifications of customer dissatisfaction…[Read more]

I think that a company’s culture and making sure that you are a good fit for it is in some aspects a lot more important than a big paycheck. Whether or not you fit into the company culture is directly related to your job satisfaction and happiness overall. If you are miserable all day and hate your job, what is the point of working? You go to work…[Read more]

This is an interesting article because it is hard to believe that 3D printing has advanced to the point where it can manufacture these types of crucial parts. In reality, any company that manufactures any sort of good could benefit from this, whether it is car parts, airplane parts, firearms, any electronics, and even something as simple as…[Read more]

I work for Dorma Door Controls and our main location in Germany has recently implemented a collaboration tool that is new to our business, and it is called Yammer. Yammer is essentially Facebook for organizations, but it is owned by Microsoft. Since it is relatively new to the company, the entire business hasn’t really adopted it and has been…[Read more]

In this TIME.com article, author Tim Bajarin explains that the most disruptive technology that we will experience over the next five years is not a new technology. The most disruptive technology is the […]

One example of disruptive/ramifications that can be caused by the developing countries is job security. There is already a huge disruption in jobs like Accounting and Lawyers. These jobs are being outsourced to places like india where they are charging much lower rates with the exact same quality.

I feel as though the internet becoming more of a norm in developing countries is a positive thing. Instead of teachers, doctor’s and volunteers visiting these countries to help them better sustain themselves, the internet can be brought in to help countries create jobs, educate themselves and slowly help build their country.

The internet has been a great boon to developing countries. Recently we saw mass rallies being organized over social media. Rallies that toppled governments, and it is still going on. It has also allowed some developing countries to really shoot ahead in certain areas. If you look at some African countries for example that you will see that mobile banking, particularly mobile to mobile money transfers is something that has been used for awhile now. A technology that is only recently getting put to use here in the U.S is already old hat. This is a great opportunity for these countries since they can essential skip many of the missteps due to development and this is mainly thanks the the net.

In this Forbes article, author Michael Horn talks about his interaction with Clay Christensen and how they used disruptive innovation to suggest ways for public schools to innovate. Horn states that the education system that we have today is, in many ways, built as a sorting system. “Those students who can’t keep up with the pace are sorted out at various intervals – an arrangement that worked fine for many in the past, but in today’s knowledge economy is no longer OK.” Horn suggested that online education is a way for public schools to cater to the individual needs that each student has instead of treating them all as if they are exactly the same. Horn also states that online education could also disrupt higher education. He states that it could severely affect some institutes a lot more than others but the ones that aren’t affected that much could adopt it as sustained innovation. Do you think that online education is more disruptive towards k-12 learning or higher education? Do you think that this could be the future of learning? Will it affect any other industries?

I feel as though it could disrupt both. k-12 education needs a disruption like this, catering to individual children’s needs and learning abilities so they do not get pushed through school without really learning the fundamentals of early education. A child does need to socialize however so combining a mix of online education and physical education would be a perfect fit for youth education.
When it comes to higher education, a disruption is already happening quickly. Some of the most talented people in the technology industry are self taught. In year to come, a degree may not be needed if a person can learn how any type of information they desire through the internet.

I think that it is more disruptive towards k-12 learning. I do agree with Angela on a child needing to socialize, especially at a young age. That’s why I would wait and offer students online classes when they reach middle school. In addition, I would make the online classes completely optional allowing for both traditional and online classes. I would make it optional because some students might have a hard time adapting to online classes, which could potentially lower their grades. Online education is already a part of higher education and there are students who incorporate that into their schedules and others who only take online classes. I think it would bring more awareness to other online learning websites like Blackboard or Lynda.com. This could potentially harm the textbook publishers because students would use e-books instead.

This is a really fascinating article, considering the technological advancements that have already come before us and have enhanced the working world so tremendously. A technology that I think has a lot of potential to be disruptive would have to be the smart watch coming through by storm. Apple just released their first version of it, and it will only be a matter of time before other companies release their own version with more and more capabilities to enhance the corporate world.

In this Forbes article, author Bill Rosenthal explains the three main components to delivering a successful and effective presentation. He first highlights that the three most important parts to any presentation is: (1) making an emotional connection with the audience, (2) present with energy, and (3) spell out the payoff for the audience. Rosenthal states that conciously or not, an audience forms a bias for or against a presenter within seconds. The key to this step is ensuring that you come across as likale and trustworthy. He says that the key to being likable is simple: show you like the audience and they will reciprocate, and once that is acheived, the trust will come. The next step is to present with energy. Rosenthal states that the way to get the audience excited about your presentation is by showing them your own excitement. The last step is spelling out the payoff for the audience. Rosenthal states that you should never assume that the audience will understand the take away as quickly as you, the presenter, has. He says that you need to state your key facts and then reiterate them in different ways so that they can sink in. Seeing as how we are all going to be giving presentations on our projects, I felt that this article could be helpful. Can you think of any other techniques that you can use to incorporate Rosenthal’s three key components within your own presentations?

As a good amount of our class will be entering the working world very soon, there is a really good chance that at some point we will be making presentations to our colleagues. These tips are very useful in that sometimes I feel as if I have been to,d hundreds of different ways to present, and this really sums it up well for me. Another technique I have in mind would be in terms of the slide deck itself, and to keep it interesting and short.

One technique that I like is using some type of “grabber” in the beginning of the presentation to grab the audiences attention. Whether it be getting the audience involved or showing something shocking, this gets the audience engaged immediately, and can make the presentation more interesting. My favorite way to do this is to use impressive numbers that people are unaware of. For example, “The market for commerce is $X billion dollars.” This is particularly applicable in business presentations. I think this ties well with Rosenthal’s first point of making an emotional connection with the audience.

I feel that the three components discussed definitely go hand in hand with a successful presentation. We all have a very important presentation coming up soon. We should look at these 3 things in our groups, so that we can incorporate them into our overall presentations and it’s not just one person in the group doing this. That way it will give the presentation an overall benefit rather than having one person in the group present a fraction of what can be accomplished if the whole team emotionally connects with the audience, presents with energy, and demonstrates the payoff.

My part-time role at Dorma is as an IT Service Delivery Specialist. Some of my daily responsibilities are tending to the Helpdesk and troubleshooting problems with different types of software and hardware that […]

The project has come to an end. All of our documents are pretty much finished and we are just working on collaborating with what we think should go into our final binder. The BA’s presentation went fairly well […]

We met with our group last week and focused on the prototype. Our BA’s went to Flanagan and talked to him about the prototype and the direction that he thinks it should take. A big part of last Friday’s meeting […]